The Strange Creation

The Strange Creation

I don’t know where to begin. I am a rather strange-looking creation of Doctor Knotheader. I am a laboratory mistake. The good doctor was working on attempting to make a different animal, here I am, a Gnuzeb, a cross between a gnu and a zebra. Life is not easy. I have the stripes of the zebra and the body of the gnu. I have brown and white stripes and horns. Dear me, but I am a mess. Just how did this happen? Doctor Knotheader, in his lack of wisdom, thought it might be fun to cross two of his favorite animals, hence I was created in a test tube. I have had many adventures in my three years with the doctor. I made my debut on a scorching day in Nairobi, Kenya. I was a small calf, with the head of a zebra, a rather strange creation to say the least. Doctor Knotheader’s compound is located south of Nairobi. I liked it there, but as time went on, my thoughts began to change about many things. Doctor Knotheader began to transport me all over Kenya, as if I were some sort of prize, a booby prize maybe. The doctor began his speech, he always rambled toward the end: “This is my zany creation, this is a Gnuzeb, it is part gnu and part zebra, is he not wonderful?” There was always a lot of ohs and ahs, then a round of applause. I enjoyed being the center of attention for a while, but realizing I was different from other animals, I felt like I was an odd animal out. That did not matter to Doctor Knotheader; it was almost as if I were some sort of odd toy. More than once during our time together, I wanted to tell him I had feelings too. The more I grew into my body, the more I began to realize that if I wanted something, all I had to do was make sounds in a guttural gnu way; it never failed to get someone’s attention. Being the center of attention of so many humans was gratifying in some ways. Most marveled at my stature as I grew into my body; Doctor Knotheader thought that I would have some of the zebra’s traits; however, that was not the case. I look like a gnu or wildebeest, with brown hair and extra stripes. I would see zebras and wondered if I might someday be graceful like one. That never happened; I have the might and power of the wildebeest, but I am not graceful to say the least. The zebra's hooves make running easier for me than the cloven hooves, although my balance is a little off at times. Doctor Knotheader is great when it comes to rubbing my head and nose. I just wish he would stop patting my butt while he attempts to return me to my pen. That is terribly annoying! I sometimes dream of being just a wildebeest, minus the zebra part of me. I feel freakish often; I don’t belong with the zebras or the wildebeest, both of which are very segregated from the other. I wish I could make Doctor Knotheader understand that. I just would like to be either a normal wildebeest or zebra. It would be wonderful just to be one of the herd; instead, I find myself accepted by neither. That is my life as it is today. Doctor Knotheader will be here soon with a truck and trailer to take me to an exhibit of oddities. I just hope that he will someday he will see that I can not breed successfully, even if I wanted to, which I do not. I can even think about it, but I have no idea what the calf would look like. Mercy me, what a thought that is! The poor calf would have the same problems I have: acceptance into the herd. Zebras are so judgmental. My fur is not the correct color, my stripes are too wide, the list is endless. The Wildebeests do not really care what I look like, except that they have cloven hoofs, and mine are actual hooves, like a horse or donkey. They partially accept me, but I will never belong in a herd. I sometimes wonder what will happen to me when Doctor Knotheader passes away; he is in his eighties already, I am only two years of age. I have to think about my future. There is a young doctor who assists Doctor Knotheader. I could do worse; he at least understands my dilemma. He is an odd sort for a doctor. I will just have to wait and see how things turn out. I had a visitor last week, a zebra; she was put in the pen with me. She was very pretty, but somehow I think I may have offended her in some way. She stomped on my foot, then kicked me in the side; I think Doctor Knotheader may be trying to help me find a girlfriend! I am not sure I even like this zebra, her name is Izzy, she belongs to the herd I tried to be part of, to no avail. My point of view about this entire situation is that humans must stop playing with animal heredity; they have no right to turn us into freaks of nature. Animals apparently have no rights other than what is theirs by nature. I hope someday, man will learn the lesson that will teach them to let nature take its own path. There is one other thing I would like to say: “time is on no one's side, especially mankind. Now there is a misnomer if ever there was one: mankind, man is not kind to himself or animals or the earth that supports both of us. Doctor Knotheader is headed toward my compound area, he is here to see how Izzy and I are getting along; he certainly is in for a surprise. I helped Izzy escape about an hour ago. She deserves to be free.